Got a late start today due to mechanical issues, and squeezed in this summit just before the storms hit. Hung out on the summit 'til approaching storm clouds chased me off. Dynamite views from this peak, plus saw two mighty huge bull elk near the mountain on the drive out. Was good to get back on Trail Ridge Road, it had been a few years.

I went to Sundance with my CMC BMS instructor, Matt, to practice some snow climbing in the couloirs north and east of the mountain. We went up and over the summit, then east and down into the cirque. We were gonna go up the northernmost of the east facing couloirs, but the snow conditions were not copacetic, so we climbed right back up the north facing slope, then back over the summit again on the way to the car. The park service just opened the road about a week ago, so there's still a fair amount of snow up on Trail Ridge.

Fantastic couloir climb on the north side. Easy approach from Trail Ridge Rd, downclimbed mixed snow and rock and back up one of the narrower couloirs. Fun day despite poor visibility and new snow in June.

This is good accomplishment for kids, only about a quarter mile with 500 feet elevation gain; the first picture on this page tells it like it is. Views are great, but not that much better than driving the road. We had 20-25 mph wind, my understanding is that the wind gets a *lot* stronger.